Hey victoria I just wanted to say we love you not as a best perfect hamster owner. But as a lovely, funny person who makes mistakes like we all do sometimes , someone who has a strong passion for animals and wants to share it with the world. So next time you feel you're not good enough or not perfect just know you don't have to be and your always loved.
My hammy had mites not long ago. I felt so ashamed and didn’t tell anyone because I felt like a bad owner. Seeing this video has helped me see that it does happen every now and then. I’m feeling less bad about it now 😭 obviously treated it as soon as I found them!
Ughhh, mites are seriously the worst 😭 I don’t have hamsters but when I had mice I had a mite problem in their cage. Literally the worst, hopefully penny recovers
Just wanted to say it was comforting seeing this video. I just found mites on my dwarf hamster and am waiting to see the vet. 😭 Hope Penny is feeling better.
My hammy ozzy died 3 months ago and I’m still heartbroken. 2 weeks later I got a Chinese dwarf ham, Oakley. Not to replace ozzy, I just felt lonely. I knew ozzy would be okay with it, and I know he’s happy right now. Oakley has made me so happy. But I haven’t been keeping up with u, yk? I’ve been watching u again more and I’m happy, thank you for giving Ozzy a good life.
Super happy you found this before it got worse! I adopted an elderly hamster that unfortunately had a pretty bad compromised immune system, and later found out she had mites. They were a HUGE pain to deal with, as well as cleaning her enclosure and sanitizing all of her wooden items. I am glad you posted about this- it made me feel a bit better that even one of the more known hamster moms experiences this! I am super excited to see penny’s recovery!
i think an inevitable part of being a pet owner is trying to figure out if you should push your vet further on an issue. there have been several times i've trusted what my vets have told me, then regretted not pursuing it further. it sucks, but im glad things with penny are looking up finally :)
Omg my hamsters got mites and i felt like the shittest owner ever, i just kept thinking to myself about where i went wrong. thank you so much for sharing this! before i got my hamsters, i binged so many of your videos to see what i would need for them to give them the best life possible
It's good news to hear that! Wish you Penny recover finally. It's such relieving feeling to finally know the cause. I was also visiting vets with one of my Campbell dwarf hammys, due to her weight loss.
I love ur vids ❤ I just want to say I found out my hamster died yesterday and can't stop sobbing since. Your vids are helping me cope so much rn. Thank you ❤
My dog had demodex mites. She hated them so much. I can't imagine what a bitty hamster would be going through. It's sooooo itchy. I have one Syrian named Douglas. Thanks for all your help, Victoria.
Hi Victoria tysm for teaching me abt hamster care! When I first got my hamster he had a rly small cage but we upgraded but I do have a lot of photos of him in that cage but besides the point tysm! But my hamster just died he had a good life bc of you. Ty and telling ur mistakes helped so much. Sending prayers for penny I hope his mites are gone and he grows his hair back soon! Ty! 🫶🏼
Oh man I’m so sorry that’s the worst!!! But believe in yourself you can do it because you’re amazing and a good mother to penny and he is so grateful for you! You got this!
Thank you! I'm really happy with this vet so far, she always has an assistant come in with her to help assist and to help hold the hamster if they need and always use small towels to wrap them up to hold.
I love coming back to see how pennys doing! It makes me so happy to see the enclosure and love hes receiving. It makes me sentimental LOL. I still remember the day I saw them, and I also remember rehoming them to you, I still have the first photo of them. It makes me really happy to see the medical treatment they’re needing is being received, I’m really glad you were the one to respond to my Kijiji post and give them an AMAZING life🫶
hi, I have been watching you since as long as I can remember. I own a hamster of my own and have learned some amazing things I would just like to say thank you for putting your time into making these videos
I absolutely love your videos. My hamster, Francis had demodex mites. I treated them and he ended up passing away about 7 months later. I Hope penny gets better ❤️
Glad to hear Penny is getting better. That’s awesome you found what happened to her. You are so educational of hamster. Thank you so much I love how kind you are. I have a question, should I gave my white winter hamster soy beans? And how I should prepare it? Love you and thank you🙏❤️
Oh poor Penny. But as far as i know for Demodex Mites, cleaning the whole bedding isnt recommended because the mites live on the hamster and not the bedding. As far as im aware cleaning the enclosure stresses them out even more and weakens the immune system further. Thats usually only recommended for the bloodsucking mites
I live in Germany and it is the same here. We do not recommend tho clean the cage because it only means more stress for the Hamster. Instead, we actualy try to find out what caused the low immun System of the Hamster, because demodex mites are only a Symptom.
Same was what my vet recommended and the mites did disappear with the spot treatment. I do understand though why Victoria will want to listen to her vet first and foremost.
I know many may not keep up with my updates so they might just think this is the first time I'm dealing with this, but Penny has been dealing with this for over a year now. The first time I suspected demodex mites, the first vet gave me a treatment just in case, but I didn’t throw anything out or sanitize the enclosure like many suggest. It never fully went away, and he’s had to keep dealing with it, so this time I’m following my current vet’s advice. Since I’ve been keeping his environment clean along with the treatment, he’s had the most hair growth I’ve seen so far. it's easy to say to look for the underlying cause but for me and many others in North America that's just not our reality, it’s really hard to find a vet who knows more than the basic's about hamsters. Most won’t do blood work (I know friends in countries with good hamster welfare, and even their vets won’t do blood tests unless the hamster is over 200 grams). There just aren’t many other tests that the vets I know are willing to run. The second vet Penny saw said to me and I quote "it seems like his hair loss bothers you more than it bothers him" wish I could say I was shocked but I've had vets say worse. I have shed so many tears over vets here when it comes to hamsters because they only know the basics, I *wish* I happen to be born in Germany but I wasn't 😅 Maybe there's an underlying cause causing Penny's mites but perhaps when we got him he was stressed enough to lower his immune system or perhaps his immune system was fighting something off like it's supposed to, throughout all of this while Penny has had hair loss it would grow patches back which is why my vet mentioned it's unlikely to be something like a cancer because the hair isn't likely to grow back. Either way Penny is looking the best so far from the treatment i've been following and we are doing the best we can with what resources we have available to us.
My hamster had a mite scare last year, and I know I didn’t do anything wrong with his care, but it’s still good to see an experienced hamster keeper as yourself have the same issue! I honestly feel less alone, we had to do all the work of cleaning the cage and his things as well, 😅 SUCH a big job, 😅
hi victoria! i am also dealing with demodex mites- and to be honest, im not convinced that throwing all the bedding away and cleaning everything is necessary. ive tried my best to research the life cycle of these mites and like you said, they don’t live long without a host! and even if we factor in the eggs being laid and all that, they will still hatch and promptly die without a host. i asked my vet and sought the advice of multiple others and they all say to throw everything away and deep clean everything but they can’t tell me WHY that makes sense. i ask about the life cycle and how it works so that i can better understand (and im not putting them on the spot either, like you can go research it for yourself and get back to me) but they don’t even seem capable of forming an articulate thought on the matter. i have 1000+ dollars worth of new bedding and sand in the enclosure and wasn’t enthused about throwing it all away when they vets couldn’t even explain to me why that made any sense. im wondering if this advice is just blanket advice given for any kind of mites and catered towards people with small enclosures?? it’s so hard to find a vet that knows anything about hamsters :( i respect the education that vets have but when they look me in the face and tell me hamsters are herbivores that should live in 12x12 wired enclosure you know you can’t just trust anything they tell you to be true lol. sorry for the long ramble 😅 ive just been really trying to figure this all out. i hope penny recovers asap! 🩵🩵
I’m honestly not sure either. Penny has been dealing with this for over a year now. The first time I suspected demodex mites, the first vet gave me a treatment just in case, but I didn’t throw anything out or sanitize the enclosure. It came back, and he’s had to keep dealing with it, so this time I’m following my current vet’s advice. Since I’ve been keeping his environment clean along with the treatment, he’s had the most hair growth I’ve seen so far. I think most vets recommend it as a precaution. I know some people suggest that the vet should look into the underlying cause of the compromised immune system or stress, but good luck finding that in North America! Like you mentioned, it’s really hard to find a vet who knows much about hamsters. Most won’t do blood work (I know friends in countries with good hamster welfare, and even their vets won’t do blood tests unless the hamster is over 200 grams). There just aren’t many other tests that the vets I know are willing to run. It's a really depressing situation honestly.
im glad he’s having some hair growth!! i really hope he continues to get better 🩵 for my little guy, he’s been dealing with recurrent mites for about six months now. the first few treatments he was in his temporary bincage and i cleaned everything out like instructed. his hair nearly all grew back. but then about a month after treatment ended his hair loss returned rapidly. i thought maybe his temp bin cage was stressing him out, making the problem worse, so right now he’s doing treatment in his big enclosure. he’s underweight and i know there’s an underlying cause here but like you said- it’s nearly impossible to get a vet to diagnose such things. it can all feel so helpless :( im wishing you and your furry family healing 🤍 thanks for your reply
We've had the tropical rat mites and the advise was the same. However there was some of the bedding that was basically clean so I just froze it in plastic bags for 2 weeks and reused. Figured if I the freezer killed it on the sprays, it would on the loosely packed bedding.
My hamster had also demodex mites,got rid of them after 6 weeks of treatment, here in Finland the exotical vet also said, no need to clean the whole enclosure and it worked fine for us. I read sometimes it needs even more that 6x of the treatment
Sorry to hear about the mites issue but I’m glad you know what’s going on. I have a freezer I use only for my pets. I put my hamster’s bedding and I leave it there for three days and I also freeze the food. I’ve had several hamsters and I had to deal with mites only once (thank God) they are awful
My hamster Banjo had a respiratory infection and then yesterday I noticed mites on his multichamber hideout. Ugh such a pain but he will be going to the vet tomorrow and cleaned his cage out completely. Just leaving plastic toys and minimal bedding in there at the moment. Poor penny & banjo! Hope he recovers soon (: thanks for the video
We are now going trough this….. Chilli has on top to recover from an uterus infection 😬- and some infected area near the mouth 😓so we had to clean all and start new in an empty cage, but she is already active again for the second day. Thanks for all the information you handle Penny‘s situation
They were vets! Of. You trusted their opinions. It’s not your fault. Don’t feel bad. And you did make the decision to take him to a different vet. And at least now you know ❤️❤❤
Omg I’m now scared for my soon 4:03 to be hamster I’m getting on Friday 😢 you inspired me to get a hamster and how to care for them I watched almost all of your videos for improvement in my newly adapted pet ! Tysm for the help and I hope Penny is ok!!
OMG hi Victoria I have commented before and I was going to ask you if new how to get rid of bugs from the hamsters cage and then I saw ur listers video what a coincidence 😂 anyways love ur vids always keep it up❤
Uh, I feel you… last Monday I had to change everything, too…. I was not able to see all the moldy areas but want a save space for my little Miss Chilli. My routine is like yours. It took me 4 hours, washing and drying in the oven ,,,.
Your content has helped me so much. thank you! I had hamsters and desert rats when I grew up. Me and my sister shared responsibility and I think we did pretty well, considering this was early 90s and we relied on info from the store. Now it is much better, but stores still do not sell big enough cages. One thing I have been looking for is good bin layouts. I think I finally found one that works, but its been a long road and I would love some more tips. Also, were do you buy/use to buy bins? I can find any in norway of that size. alternatives here are bar cages or expensive trixie or nitenangel cages. I made her a bin cage when she started chewing and monkeybaring. She seems much more happy now, but I would like to upgrade to a bigger bin or something selfmade if I can. Thank you again for your content, care and passion for hamsters
I'm glad I've been able to help! For bins I'm not too sure, it may be more difficult to find something of a good size. There are quite a few IKEA hacks to make large hamster enclosures!
@@VictoriaRaechel Thank you for responding! :) I do have Ikea close by but detolf is out of production. I'm on the lookout for it used in my area, and I have seen a few selling their detolf cages but not very close to me. Im pretty handy, but I would prefer to reuse or buy something close to finished. the bin cage was a lot of work, so Im a bit sad she still doesnt seem happy with the space. Its a syrian. idk. maybe she still needs to settle in. my bin is 80*60*50 cm, which I think is 744 inches. she seems much happier than in the barcage though.
So far I haven't had a problem with my hamsters having mites but I am not giving up the conclusion that someday I might have mites and luckily I have my hamster nerve at on speed dial so I ever have mites an illness I'm not going to hesitate to take them to the vet
When my hamster had mites, she got a couple of doses of ivermectin with her food every couple of weeks and that did the trick. I would also add a drop of fish oil to her diet a couple times a week, I felt it helped with the dryness of the skin and the fur grew back faster too. Glad Penny finally has a diagnosis and is on the way to recovery.
Awee, penny! I wish him the best of luck ❤️ Any tips on convincing parent to get a hamster, obviously I have all the money, and able to pay all the vet bills! But any advice? Btw love your videos! 🐹
@@VictoriaRaechel I think it’s that they think they will have to care for it. And I think it’s also because they don’t want another animal to worry about or find a pet sitter, although they don’t really listen when I tell them their fairly low maintenance..
Can you make a video about what you need to do every day when your a beginner and owning a hamster like when to feed it when to clean the cage and what time to spot clean and when to let it play and stuff sorry if you understand I’m trying to put in the best way possible
This was very interesting! So how do the mites that might already be on the hamster go from being a non issue to then multiplying and causing issues? Is it only if the host has say a weakened immune system? Do they normally just die off after a week? Very interesting that a hamster can already have them but they don’t necessarily become an issue!
All mammals have demodex mites :) You have some on you right now! They become an issue when the immune system is compromised or stress or if they were in contact with another that had an infestation of them.
Oh no, poor Penny! Don't be so hard on yourself either though, as at the end of the day we rely on medical professionals - it's just a shame they don't always do the most they can do. This was such an educational video though, thank you
@@VictoriaRaechel Definitely agree! I have guinea pigs and I was so relieved when my local vet said she'd reach out to a more qualified exotic vet with a weird eye issue one of mine is having, because even though she seems to be doing okay, they hide is so well it's hard to tell. I hope the treatments help though!
Hi Victoria! I love your videos and I actually suspect one of my hamsters, Dobby, has mites. Only recently in the last day or so have I noticed he’s been itching more and rubbing himself up against his wall and hides. I haven’t noticed any hair loss yet and his skin seems fine as of today but I need to talk with my mom about getting him checked with the exotic vet which sadly in my area is only open 3 days a week (ik- stupid).
Hi Victoria, I have no idea but there seems to be a lot more of demodex in hamsters cases popping up here and there. Definately worth investigating more into, but I have not found an answer yet. Just make sure to clean the dirty bedding everyday and perhaps remove the wood items. My hamster recovered from demodex and he's getting so much better now!
I wouldn't clean it every day as that would add a lot more stress onto them, but spot cleaning soiled areas is always okay ☺️ Wooden items are fine to use and can easily be sanitized if necessary!
I've had hamsters for years I didn't know they could get mites very good to know and to watch out for now that I do know thank you Victoria always thinking of others ❤
Hey victoria I just wanted to say we love you not as a best perfect hamster owner. But as a lovely, funny person who makes mistakes like we all do sometimes , someone who has a strong passion for animals and wants to share it with the world. So next time you feel you're not good enough or not perfect just know you don't have to be and your always loved.
This was very sweet, thank you 🥺
Qim really grateful for all your advice. I'm now sorry your little fella has fleas. I shall be watching this again as I really learn from you.
@@hoppitinn Thankfully it's just demodex mites and not fleas!
My hammy had mites not long ago. I felt so ashamed and didn’t tell anyone because I felt like a bad owner. Seeing this video has helped me see that it does happen every now and then. I’m feeling less bad about it now 😭 obviously treated it as soon as I found them!
I'm so sorry you felt that way :( mites do not mean you are a bad owner, mites can happen to any pet owner no matter what they do.
Ughhh, mites are seriously the worst 😭 I don’t have hamsters but when I had mice I had a mite problem in their cage. Literally the worst, hopefully penny recovers
Just wanted to say it was comforting seeing this video. I just found mites on my dwarf hamster and am waiting to see the vet. 😭 Hope Penny is feeling better.
I'm glad it could comfort you!! Penny is a lot better now 😄
My hammy ozzy died 3 months ago and I’m still heartbroken. 2 weeks later I got a Chinese dwarf ham, Oakley. Not to replace ozzy, I just felt lonely. I knew ozzy would be okay with it, and I know he’s happy right now. Oakley has made me so happy. But I haven’t been keeping up with u, yk? I’ve been watching u again more and I’m happy, thank you for giving Ozzy a good life.
Super happy you found this before it got worse! I adopted an elderly hamster that unfortunately had a pretty bad compromised immune system, and later found out she had mites. They were a HUGE pain to deal with, as well as cleaning her enclosure and sanitizing all of her wooden items. I am glad you posted about this- it made me feel a bit better that even one of the more known hamster moms experiences this! I am super excited to see penny’s recovery!
Thank you! I'm so sorry to hear that!
i think an inevitable part of being a pet owner is trying to figure out if you should push your vet further on an issue. there have been several times i've trusted what my vets have told me, then regretted not pursuing it further. it sucks, but im glad things with penny are looking up finally :)
Omg my hamsters got mites and i felt like the shittest owner ever, i just kept thinking to myself about where i went wrong. thank you so much for sharing this! before i got my hamsters, i binged so many of your videos to see what i would need for them to give them the best life possible
It's good news to hear that! Wish you Penny recover finally. It's such relieving feeling to finally know the cause. I was also visiting vets with one of my Campbell dwarf hammys, due to her weight loss.
Odd timing! I just found mites in my own hamster enclosure. It's shocking! Thank you for the advice. 🧡
Thank you so much for being a creator! You inspire so many of us! Just thank you!!😍
Aw thank you so much 🥺
I love ur vids ❤ I just want to say I found out my hamster died yesterday and can't stop sobbing since. Your vids are helping me cope so much rn. Thank you ❤
I'm so sorry for your loss! 😢
You are such a great hammy parent and I’m so glad you know what’s up with Penny! You and Penny will get through this! ❤😊
Thank you Melissa! ❤️
My dog had demodex mites. She hated them so much. I can't imagine what a bitty hamster would be going through. It's sooooo itchy. I have one Syrian named Douglas. Thanks for all your help, Victoria.
Feel better Penny!
I am so sorry that you are both going through this. Finding a good small animal vet is so difficult in too many places.
Thank you! Good exotic vets are few and far between for most of us unfortunately :(
FEEL BETTER, PENNY!!😭😭😭😭❤❤❤ thankful though that it was mites and not something like cancer
Me too!
Wishing Penny a speedy recovery! Thanks for being real and not perfect. We like you just the way you are. ❤
Hi Victoria tysm for teaching me abt hamster care! When I first got my hamster he had a rly small cage but we upgraded but I do have a lot of photos of him in that cage but besides the point tysm! But my hamster just died he had a good life bc of you. Ty and telling ur mistakes helped so much. Sending prayers for penny I hope his mites are gone and he grows his hair back soon! Ty! 🫶🏼
Oh man I’m so sorry that’s the worst!!! But believe in yourself you can do it because you’re amazing and a good mother to penny and he is so grateful for you! You got this!
Happy you found a competent vet. And thank you for teaching me about this mite problem and how to deal with it.
Thank you! She is so far been very good.
oh penny ❤ i hope your hamster gets better ❤️ (PS i love your hair)
Oh thank you!!! 🥰❤️
Really glad you know what wrong and hopefully Penny gets all fluffy again soon!
So glad you finally found out what was wrong with him! Hope he makes a fast recovery he’s such a cutie
Oh no!!!! I HATE mites, I had mites in my hamster cage a year ago and It was horrible, I hope Penny is well now ❤❤❤
Thank you!
Get well soon Penny!
So glad you finally found a vet that was willing to work with you for these pets.
Thank you! I'm really happy with this vet so far, she always has an assistant come in with her to help assist and to help hold the hamster if they need and always use small towels to wrap them up to hold.
I love coming back to see how pennys doing! It makes me so happy to see the enclosure and love hes receiving. It makes me sentimental LOL. I still remember the day I saw them, and I also remember rehoming them to you, I still have the first photo of them.
It makes me really happy to see the medical treatment they’re needing is being received, I’m really glad you were the one to respond to my Kijiji post and give them an AMAZING life🫶
I hope Penny feels better 🤞 and I love your vids my hamster care is so much better because of you
I'm glad I've been able to help! ❤️
Oh poor penny hope he recovers!! I bet this will be a lovely video❤
Thank you!!
Yay new video!!! You are the best UA-camr ever!!!❤❤❤ and pet mom
You're so kind 🥰 thank you!
hi, I have been watching you since as long as I can remember. I own a hamster of my own and have learned some amazing things I would just like to say thank you for putting your time into making these videos
Thank you for watching ❤️
Hi Victoria,i just wanted to say that Penny is soooo cute and i hope that he gets better soon!❤
Thank you Sienna!
Hope Penny feels better soon so his handsome hair comes back. So glad that you got the proper diagnosis.❤
Thank you!
Hi, love your channel, not everyone is perfect, thanks for posting, very informative 😊
Get well Penny!!
Thank you Lucy!
I absolutely love your videos. My hamster, Francis had demodex mites. I treated them and he ended up passing away about 7 months later. I Hope penny gets better ❤️
Thank you! i'm glad you've had success with treating them ☺️
Hope he gets better soon, he's so cute 🥰🥰🥰🥰
He is very cute hamster 🐹
Thank you!
I hope penny is gonna get better❤
Love the new intro❤
Thank you! ❤️
Glad to hear Penny is getting better. That’s awesome you found what happened to her. You are so educational of hamster. Thank you so much I love how kind you are.
I have a question, should I gave my white winter hamster soy beans? And how I should prepare it?
Love you and thank you🙏❤️
Oh poor Penny. But as far as i know for Demodex Mites, cleaning the whole bedding isnt recommended because the mites live on the hamster and not the bedding. As far as im aware cleaning the enclosure stresses them out even more and weakens the immune system further. Thats usually only recommended for the bloodsucking mites
I'm following my vets instructions ☺️
I live in Germany and it is the same here. We do not recommend tho clean the cage because it only means more stress for the Hamster. Instead, we actualy try to find out what caused the low immun System of the Hamster, because demodex mites are only a Symptom.
Same was what my vet recommended and the mites did disappear with the spot treatment. I do understand though why Victoria will want to listen to her vet first and foremost.
I know many may not keep up with my updates so they might just think this is the first time I'm dealing with this, but Penny has been dealing with this for over a year now. The first time I suspected demodex mites, the first vet gave me a treatment just in case, but I didn’t throw anything out or sanitize the enclosure like many suggest. It never fully went away, and he’s had to keep dealing with it, so this time I’m following my current vet’s advice. Since I’ve been keeping his environment clean along with the treatment, he’s had the most hair growth I’ve seen so far.
it's easy to say to look for the underlying cause but for me and many others in North America that's just not our reality, it’s really hard to find a vet who knows more than the basic's about hamsters. Most won’t do blood work (I know friends in countries with good hamster welfare, and even their vets won’t do blood tests unless the hamster is over 200 grams). There just aren’t many other tests that the vets I know are willing to run. The second vet Penny saw said to me and I quote "it seems like his hair loss bothers you more than it bothers him" wish I could say I was shocked but I've had vets say worse. I have shed so many tears over vets here when it comes to hamsters because they only know the basics, I *wish* I happen to be born in Germany but I wasn't 😅
Maybe there's an underlying cause causing Penny's mites but perhaps when we got him he was stressed enough to lower his immune system or perhaps his immune system was fighting something off like it's supposed to, throughout all of this while Penny has had hair loss it would grow patches back which is why my vet mentioned it's unlikely to be something like a cancer because the hair isn't likely to grow back. Either way Penny is looking the best so far from the treatment i've been following and we are doing the best we can with what resources we have available to us.
Tysm I just got my hamster Hanky like 2 weeks ago and do my best to follow all of ur tips! And I think she is doing well and playing great!
I'm glad my channel has been able to help!
Been there done that. It's such a pain! Hope Penny will get well soon!
I just had this happen with my baby, this could not be more perfect timing, thank you!
Best wishes penny such a sweet fellow
I cant stop watching ur vids!
Keep it up!
We all ❤ u😊
My hamster had a mite scare last year, and I know I didn’t do anything wrong with his care, but it’s still good to see an experienced hamster keeper as yourself have the same issue! I honestly feel less alone, we had to do all the work of cleaning the cage and his things as well, 😅 SUCH a big job, 😅
Don't worry you aren't alone! It can happen to any hamster owner no matter what you do to try and prevent it.
Great video. Hope Penny is feeling better 🥰
Poor baby hope he gets better 🫶
Hope he gets better❤
Thank you!
Victoria is a great hamster owner good that you know what's wrong with penny hope he gets better soon
Thank you! ❤️
I hope penny feels better he seem s like a sweet boy
Thank you! He is a very sweet boy ❤️
Oh poor penny, hes so cute though. love your videos and am getting another hamster soon!
hi victoria! i am also dealing with demodex mites- and to be honest, im not convinced that throwing all the bedding away and cleaning everything is necessary. ive tried my best to research the life cycle of these mites and like you said, they don’t live long without a host! and even if we factor in the eggs being laid and all that, they will still hatch and promptly die without a host. i asked my vet and sought the advice of multiple others and they all say to throw everything away and deep clean everything but they can’t tell me WHY that makes sense. i ask about the life cycle and how it works so that i can better understand (and im not putting them on the spot either, like you can go research it for yourself and get back to me) but they don’t even seem capable of forming an articulate thought on the matter. i have 1000+ dollars worth of new bedding and sand in the enclosure and wasn’t enthused about throwing it all away when they vets couldn’t even explain to me why that made any sense. im wondering if this advice is just blanket advice given for any kind of mites and catered towards people with small enclosures?? it’s so hard to find a vet that knows anything about hamsters :( i respect the education that vets have but when they look me in the face and tell me hamsters are herbivores that should live in 12x12 wired enclosure you know you can’t just trust anything they tell you to be true lol. sorry for the long ramble 😅 ive just been really trying to figure this all out. i hope penny recovers asap! 🩵🩵
I’m honestly not sure either. Penny has been dealing with this for over a year now. The first time I suspected demodex mites, the first vet gave me a treatment just in case, but I didn’t throw anything out or sanitize the enclosure. It came back, and he’s had to keep dealing with it, so this time I’m following my current vet’s advice. Since I’ve been keeping his environment clean along with the treatment, he’s had the most hair growth I’ve seen so far. I think most vets recommend it as a precaution.
I know some people suggest that the vet should look into the underlying cause of the compromised immune system or stress, but good luck finding that in North America! Like you mentioned, it’s really hard to find a vet who knows much about hamsters. Most won’t do blood work (I know friends in countries with good hamster welfare, and even their vets won’t do blood tests unless the hamster is over 200 grams). There just aren’t many other tests that the vets I know are willing to run. It's a really depressing situation honestly.
im glad he’s having some hair growth!! i really hope he continues to get better 🩵 for my little guy, he’s been dealing with recurrent mites for about six months now. the first few treatments he was in his temporary bincage and i cleaned everything out like instructed. his hair nearly all grew back. but then about a month after treatment ended his hair loss returned rapidly. i thought maybe his temp bin cage was stressing him out, making the problem worse, so right now he’s doing treatment in his big enclosure. he’s underweight and i know there’s an underlying cause here but like you said- it’s nearly impossible to get a vet to diagnose such things. it can all feel so helpless :( im wishing you and your furry family healing 🤍 thanks for your reply
We've had the tropical rat mites and the advise was the same. However there was some of the bedding that was basically clean so I just froze it in plastic bags for 2 weeks and reused. Figured if I the freezer killed it on the sprays, it would on the loosely packed bedding.
My hamster had also demodex mites,got rid of them after 6 weeks of treatment, here in Finland the exotical vet also said, no need to clean the whole enclosure and it worked fine for us. I read sometimes it needs even more that 6x of the treatment
Sorry to hear about the mites issue but I’m glad you know what’s going on. I have a freezer I use only for my pets. I put my hamster’s bedding and I leave it there for three days and I also freeze the food. I’ve had several hamsters and I had to deal with mites only once (thank God) they are awful
I hope penny gets well soon
My hamster Banjo had a respiratory infection and then yesterday I noticed mites on his multichamber hideout. Ugh such a pain but he will be going to the vet tomorrow and cleaned his cage out completely. Just leaving plastic toys and minimal bedding in there at the moment. Poor penny & banjo! Hope he recovers soon (: thanks for the video
Oh no :( i hope Banjo recovers quickly!! ❤️
Hi Victoria, could you make an updated video on how to train your hamster? I’m getting one soon!
I hope he feels better soon.
Hey Victoria I have learned more things from you than school
Oh poor penny. Well
It turns out you were right the entire time about him having mites. Trust your gut momma you know best. Hugs
Thank you 🥺 Wish they would have done the skin scraping the first time so if it came back I could go back and we'd have treated it again and sooner.
@@VictoriaRaechel I know they weaponized their incompetence and compromised Pennys health and that’s unacceptable
We are now going trough this….. Chilli has on top to recover from an uterus infection 😬- and some infected area near the mouth 😓so we had to clean all and start new in an empty cage, but she is already active again for the second day. Thanks for all the information you handle Penny‘s situation
Haha I did the move out too with the laundry basket 🤗
Oh no! I hope she's feeling better soon 🥺
Oh no!!! I hope he is ok!! My hamster Batman had mites last month and took me forever to take care of them ❤
Aw! I'm glad you were able to get rid of them!
@@VictoriaRaechel Thankss!! I hope penny gets his all out too!!
Damn, ok Vic I see you with that new intro! love the green
I literally had to do this a month ago, with both of my hamsters. It really is a TON of work
Get well soon, little guy!
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
First!!!! Yay I’ve been so exited for this vid
Hope you enjoyed it!
They were vets! Of. You trusted their opinions. It’s not your fault. Don’t feel bad. And you did make the decision to take him to a different vet. And at least now you know ❤️❤❤
Thank you ❤️
Hope your hamster is ok❤❤❤
Hey Victoria i just got a new syrian hampster named queso!! and was just gonna ask if you could make a updated hamster taming video!💗
I don't actually have anything to update for those videos! My how to bond with your hamster video has my most recent tips! ☺️
@@VictoriaRaechel okay thank you!!!
Poor Penny, at least you now know what is wrong and he can get treatment.
Yes!
Omg I’m now scared for my soon
4:03 to be hamster I’m getting on Friday 😢 you inspired me to get a hamster and how to care for them I watched almost all of your videos for improvement in my newly adapted pet ! Tysm for the help and I hope Penny is ok!!
Get well soon penny ❤
Poor Penny!😥🐹❤Good job!
Early! Im so sorry this is happening I hope it gets better!
Ohhh noooooo! Poor Penny.... I hope he gets better!
What a pain that is about your hamster, it's strange that it's stuck if you have it in its cage, everything clean. Greetings from Chile ♥️♥️
Hi! I Love your channel! I just got a hamster this September! I named him Mocha, I think he is a hybrid dwarf hamster.
Congrats on your new friend! 🥰
1ST COMMENT!!!!!!Oh nooo. Hope he is ok your my favorite UA-camr by the way and is so inspirational
I am so sorry victoria 😢
OMG hi Victoria I have commented before and I was going to ask you if new how to get rid of bugs from the hamsters cage and then I saw ur listers video what a coincidence 😂 anyways love ur vids always keep it up❤
I meant to say latest not listers
haha perfect timing!
@@VictoriaRaechel lol
I hope penny gets better
Thank you!
Uh, I feel you… last Monday I had to change everything, too…. I was not able to see all the moldy areas but want a save space for my little Miss Chilli. My routine is like yours. It took me 4 hours, washing and drying in the oven ,,,.
Your content has helped me so much. thank you! I had hamsters and desert rats when I grew up. Me and my sister shared responsibility and I think we did pretty well, considering this was early 90s and we relied on info from the store. Now it is much better, but stores still do not sell big enough cages.
One thing I have been looking for is good bin layouts. I think I finally found one that works, but its been a long road and I would love some more tips. Also, were do you buy/use to buy bins? I can find any in norway of that size. alternatives here are bar cages or expensive trixie or nitenangel cages. I made her a bin cage when she started chewing and monkeybaring. She seems much more happy now, but I would like to upgrade to a bigger bin or something selfmade if I can.
Thank you again for your content, care and passion for hamsters
I'm glad I've been able to help! For bins I'm not too sure, it may be more difficult to find something of a good size. There are quite a few IKEA hacks to make large hamster enclosures!
@@VictoriaRaechel Thank you for responding! :) I do have Ikea close by but detolf is out of production. I'm on the lookout for it used in my area, and I have seen a few selling their detolf cages but not very close to me. Im pretty handy, but I would prefer to reuse or buy something close to finished. the bin cage was a lot of work, so Im a bit sad she still doesnt seem happy with the space. Its a syrian. idk. maybe she still needs to settle in. my bin is 80*60*50 cm, which I think is 744 inches.
she seems much happier than in the barcage though.
So far I haven't had a problem with my hamsters having mites but I am not giving up the conclusion that someday I might have mites and luckily I have my hamster nerve at on speed dial so I ever have mites an illness I'm not going to hesitate to take them to the vet
Hey Victoria my hamster is getting put down he has a huge lump on his chest hope ur hams are ok!♡
Is so cute you need to think that❤
NO PENNY 😢I feel so bad for him!(also hi!)
When my hamster had mites, she got a couple of doses of ivermectin with her food every couple of weeks and that did the trick. I would also add a drop of fish oil to her diet a couple times a week, I felt it helped with the dryness of the skin and the fur grew back faster too. Glad Penny finally has a diagnosis and is on the way to recovery.
I'm glad your hamster is doing well now!
Awee, penny! I wish him the best of luck ❤️ Any tips on convincing parent to get a hamster, obviously I have all the money, and able to pay all the vet bills! But any advice? Btw love your videos! 🐹
What is their current reasoning for not wanting one?
@@VictoriaRaechel I think it’s that they think they will have to care for it. And I think it’s also because they don’t want another animal to worry about or find a pet sitter, although they don’t really listen when I tell them their fairly low maintenance..
Can you make a video about what you need to do every day when your a beginner and owning a hamster like when to feed it when to clean the cage and what time to spot clean and when to let it play and stuff sorry if you understand I’m trying to put in the best way possible
Sorry if you don’t understand I meant to put that not sorry if you understand 😂
I AM PRAYING FOR YOU SWEET SWEET ADORBAL PENNY ❤
Awww penny noo!! Atleast hes gettin treatment^^
(How am i this early to my comfort youtubers videos WHAT:0)
This was very interesting! So how do the mites that might already be on the hamster go from being a non issue to then multiplying and causing issues? Is it only if the host has say a weakened immune system? Do they normally just die off after a week? Very interesting that a hamster can already have them but they don’t necessarily become an issue!
All mammals have demodex mites :) You have some on you right now! They become an issue when the immune system is compromised or stress or if they were in contact with another that had an infestation of them.
@@VictoriaRaechel it’s so bizarre that they just chill on you until one day they’re like oh look they’re feeling rubbish let’s multiply 😂
Oh no, poor Penny! Don't be so hard on yourself either though, as at the end of the day we rely on medical professionals - it's just a shame they don't always do the most they can do. This was such an educational video though, thank you
Thank you! It sucks sometimes but at least we've found a vet that seems to care a lot more than the ones we've seen in the past.
@@VictoriaRaechel Definitely agree! I have guinea pigs and I was so relieved when my local vet said she'd reach out to a more qualified exotic vet with a weird eye issue one of mine is having, because even though she seems to be doing okay, they hide is so well it's hard to tell. I hope the treatments help though!
Hi Victoria! I love your videos and I actually suspect one of my hamsters, Dobby, has mites. Only recently in the last day or so have I noticed he’s been itching more and rubbing himself up against his wall and hides. I haven’t noticed any hair loss yet and his skin seems fine as of today but I need to talk with my mom about getting him checked with the exotic vet which sadly in my area is only open 3 days a week (ik- stupid).
Penny is so cute ❤
Great video as always
Than you Chantal!
Hi Victoria, I have no idea but there seems to be a lot more of demodex in hamsters cases popping up here and there. Definately worth investigating more into, but I have not found an answer yet. Just make sure to clean the dirty bedding everyday and perhaps remove the wood items. My hamster recovered from demodex and he's getting so much better now!
I wouldn't clean it every day as that would add a lot more stress onto them, but spot cleaning soiled areas is always okay ☺️ Wooden items are fine to use and can easily be sanitized if necessary!
I've had hamsters for years I didn't know they could get mites very good to know and to watch out for now that I do know thank you Victoria always thinking of others ❤